The wide offerings for snow retention systems

by David Flaherty | 12 February 2025 11:58 am

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Long before the calendar turned to February, snow had been falling across the country for several months. In some Colorado cities, the first snowfall of the season tracks back to October 2024. Often, the snow piles up on metal roofs and then slides off, potentially injuring people and damaging property.

Many smart roofing contractors working in geographic areas with snow and ice incorporate snow retention products into their roof systems. The proactive steps of using snow guards, fences, and bars can save lives. Not using them may mean a trip back to a project for a retrofit application.

Nick Pointek with On Point Contracting[2] in Colorado has seen this firsthand. He watched two large hotels being constructed side-by-side with steep metal roofs. While not his project, he stopped by during construction to recommend a snow retention system but was not taken up on his advice. Then, six months later, after the hotels had opened, he stopped by again.

“The hotel manager was thrilled to talk with me about a retrofit snow guard system,” says Pointek. “They’d had several snowfalls where the accumulated snow avalanched off the roof.” Pointek notes this was enough to convince them to invest in a bar-style snow guard system with metal-colored strips that matched the green color of the hotel’s standing seam metal roofs.

“After that system was installed both the guests and owners slept easier at night,” Pointek adds.

Trends in metal roofing

During the past several years, as metal roofing has grown in popularity, so has the use of snow bars and snow fences. According to Lars Walberg,  president of Rocky Mountain Snow Guards[3], these components are especially successful snow retention systems crafted for the slick nature of metal roofs, particularly standing seam metal roofs, and most products have exceptional features for metal roofing.

Bar-style overview

Overall, the bar style is one of three types of snow guards used on metal roofs. It consists of a continuous length of rectangular metal “bar” installed horizontally across the roof to form a barrier to snow and ice. The product looks very clean and modern on a roof.

Often, only one row of bar-style snow guards is needed. This depends on the pitch of the roof, the distance from the eave to the peak, and the snow load present. However, some projects require several rows to handle the load.

For a bar-style system, a bracket is mechanically attached to the decking or roof structure below the metal roof with screws, or the bracket may be clamped to the seams of a standing seam roof.

Fence-style overview

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Similar to bar-style snow guards, this snow guard system has two or more tubes vertically oriented like a split rail fence. These systems are often used on custom homes and in situations where a less modern appearance is desired.

As with the bar style, two methods of attachment are used. One is a bolt attached to the fence-style snow guard. The other is a clamp-attached. Check the testing data when investing in any snow guard system. Some fence-style snow guard systems are exceptionally strong and can handle snow loads of more than 366 kg/m² (75 lbs/sf) or higher.

Snow guard overview

Quite often, the most well-known type of snow retention—individual small and large (low and large profile) snow guards—can be attached in a pattern, usually to the flat part of a metal roof but sometimes clamped to the seam. They can be installed on standing seam panel roofs, through fastened metal panel roofs, and on most metal shingles.

There are snow guards available from many manufacturers of metals and plastics. Snow guards are attached to the roof surface by adhering with liquid adhesive or tape. They may also be attached mechanically with screws that penetrate the metal panel and grip the wood decking or substructure below the metal roof. A second category of snow guards clamp to the seam of a standing seam metal roof.

Solar panels and snow retention

As the earth experiences its hottest days ever, people are moving to capture the sun’s energy with roofing solar panels. But when the weather turns snowy,
these create some of the slickest roof surfaces imaginable.

“The key is to protect people and property from snow accumulating below the solar panels as they keep working,” says Walberg. “There needs to be a ‘catch basin’ for the snow as it slides off the solar panels and before it falls off the roofs.”

Designed specifically for snow retention below solar panel installations, aluminum snow retention systems ensure no snow slips past the snow fence. Suitable for both new roof and retrofit roof applications, the brackets must be bolted down to the roof support structure.

Some snow guard manufacturers offer free snow retention plans designed from architectural plans or satellite roof reports. Contact companies to determine the support available for your next project.

Source URL: https://www.metalconstructionnews.com/articles/the-wide-offerings-for-snow-retention-systems/

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